Dispatch-system terminal



uly 1 1930. J. T. COWLEY 1,769, 77

DISPATCH SYSTEM TERMINAL Filed Nov. 15. 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 James 17 6021/5 5/ W, M w

July 1, 1930. ,J. T. C OWLEY 1,769,677

I DISPATCH SYSTEM TERMINAL Filed Nov. 15, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 lizveniar: 174777581 0021/26 797 W M4 7 J. T. COWLEY 1,769,677

DISPATCH SYSTEM TERMINAL Filed Nov. 15 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 July 1, 1930.

y 1930- J. COWLEY 1,769,677

DI SPATCH SYSTEM TERMINAL Filed Nov. 15, 1928 4 sn t -s t 4 fizveizior: Javnas' T. 6 01026 79 W M Patented July 11, 123% time as enemas r. comma, or srnacusn, New Y a Application filed Hovember 15, 1928. Serial H0. 319,.

This invention pertains to pneumatic dispatch systems and more particularly to a dispatch and delivery terminal for such systems. This terminal may readily conform with the 3 artistic and pleasing appearance of the various furnishings that are now commonly employed in mercantile or similar establishments and takes the place of the obviously mechanical unaesthetic and often untidy pneugo matic terminal structure heretofore commonly used. The latterhas ordinarily comprised separate delivery and dispatch tubes each with a noisy valve or cover and a basket or other open receptacle disposed adjoining the same in which arriving carriers are caught .and in which idle carriers are contained.

The terminal aiiorded by the present invention in some respects is an improvement upon the terminal of the same general character disclosed and claimed in copending ap plication, Serial No. 274,434 0 J ames T. Cowley, filed May 2, 1928. In accordance with the present invention the structural arrangement may be more simple and somewhatmore compact and the number of movable parts is reduced, the arrangement of the ends of the delivery and dispatch tubes and/or of the deflector being such as to prevent the immediate movement of the carrier from one tube to the other before the same is received b the clerk or the like. Thus the present invention affords a pneumatic tube terminal which requires little space and which may be readily concealed in whole or part, if desired, or, if exposed, may be finished in any suitable manner to conform With the appearance of the surrounding store furnishings. This terminal also is less noisy than the usual open terminal arrangement since arriving carriers are stoppedand retained within a closed receptacle until the same is opened by the operator. A terminal of this character conveniently may be built into or combined with any suitable portion of the store furnishings, such as a counter, bench,

stack of shelving, or the like.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of one form of terminal, the position of certain parts being indicated by dotted lines;

' ing to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 respectively, but show a still difierent embodiment of the invention;

' and Fig. 13 is an enlarged side elevation of a latch assembly.

Referring first to Fig. 1, which shows one embodiment of the present invention, it is evident that my improved terminal comprises a box 1 which ma be of any suitable form but which prefera ly is rectangular, having an interior thickness somewhat greater than but substantially of the order of the diameter of a conventional carrier.

In this embodiment of the invention the door is shown as provided with a latch mechanism 50 which is adapted not only to secure the doorin locked position but also is effective 1n. permittin the ready breaking of the vacuum seal w lch may be provided by the gasket 51 arranged about the opening 10. Thus, if there is a subatmospheric pressure within the box, the movement of the door outwardly against the atmospheric pressure is aided by this arrangement, which is shown more particularly in Fig. 13, a lever 52 being pivotally mounted upon the door and arranged outwardly of a fixed striker element 53, the adjoining ends of the lever and striker normally being urged apart by a coil spring 54and this end of the lever preferably carrymg a roller 55. A latch block 56 is pivotally mounted upon the wall of the box adjoining opening 10 having a downwardly curved or incline surface engageable by the end of the striker element 53 and by the roller 55. A spring 58 yieldably urges the latch element 56 toward the lever When the door is closed the striker element 53 fixed upon the door causes the member 56 to compress spring 58 and permits the striker member to engage the recess 59 provided for this purpose, thereby holding the door in its closed position. When the door is opened the handle portion of lever 52 is pulled upwardly pressin the roller 55 inwardly and swinging the atch member 56 about its axis to com ress spring 58 and to release the end of stri er element 53. At the The 1 terial 62. Suitable openin ly out of this same time the lever 52 acts as a pry bar to push the door away from the opening and to opose the action of atmospheric pressure in olding the same in its closed position.

Door 2 preferably ma be mounted upon pintle 4 which is dispose in brackets 5 at the bottom of the box, a spring 6 being associated with this hinge in order to urge the door into a normall closed position.

The en of the delivery tube 12 extends upwardly through the bottom of the box at one end thereof. A curved deflecting plate 14 is arranged to engage carriers moving upwardtube and to turn the same to a position where their longitudinal axis are at an angle to the axis of the tube end. Thus, in the embodiment of the invention shown in Fi 1, 2 and 3, the deflector plate 14 may be are ed and may extend from one side of the box 1 to the other. The end of the dispatch tube 15 preferably is juxtaposed to that of the deliverytube and is arranged adjoining the opening 10 so that a carrier may be conveniently inserted therein when the door is open.

ortions of tubes 12 and 15 which pro- 'ect into the box conveniently may be in uxtaposed parallelism, being arranged at a distance from each other much less than the 10 'tudinal extent of an ordinary carrier.

A false bottom may be disposed within the box 1 to support the carrier in convenient relation to the door opening. This bottom may be supported by angles 61 and may be covered by a layer of sound deadening ma- 7 '63 in plate 60 are aligned with the ends 0 the delivery and dispatch tubes to rmit the movement of carriers therethrou h:

It is evident t at the tube portions 12 and 15 are connected to the conventional central station and blower system so that ordinarily a continuous draft of air may circulate through the box 1, passing inwardly, as indicated by the arrow adjolnin tube 12, and passing outwardly through tu 15, as indicatedby-the correspond arrow. Due, however, to the disposition o the deflector late 14 and the arrangement of the two en a in juxtaposition, which is received from the tube 12 will not be drawn into the tube 15 but will be cast upward] against the curved portion of deflector late 4, whence it will dro' intoasubstantial horizontal 'tion in. nt of the door 2. ince the thi es of the interior of the box is substantially of the order of the diameter of the carriers, the same will remain juxtaposed to the door. Thus, the door 2 may be a carrier C of normal length swung downwardly against the action of spring 6, and the arriving carrier may be readily removed. A carrier which is to be dispatched may be inserted in the end of tube 15, and, upon the closing of door 12, a suificiently strong circulation of air is set up to with a closure 2 and a handle 3, but in this em bodiment of the invention the delivery and dispatch tubes both extend into the top of the terminal chamber, these tubes being designated respectively by numerals 12 and 15 and the deflector plate 14; being curved or bowed downwardly i. e., being in an inverted position in relation to that shown in Fig. 2.

Preferably in this embodiment of the invention the dispatch tube may extend downwardly for a substantial distance into the terminal chamber so that its open end adjoinsthe upper edge of opening 10 while the delivery tube may terminate just below the top wall of the chamber. It is evident that with this embodiment of the invention gravity assists the air current passing through pipe 12 and causes the arriving carrier to engage the curved plate 14 and to slide or drop downwardly to a substantially horizontal position adjolning the door 2, thus being deflected to a position wherein it will not be caught in the air draft passing into dispatch tube 15". p

It may be further noted that in this embodiment of the invention the ends of tubes 12 and 15' are spaced at a distance from each other less than the length of a normal carrier.- Obviously when a carrier is to be sent to the central station the door 2 is opened and the carrier inserted into the open end of tube 15'. Then upon closing of the door 2 the air current through the terminal chamber will propel the carrier to the receiving station.

Figs. 7, 8 and 9 illustrate an embodiment of the invention similar to that shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 but with a door 2" with a suitable pintle 4" and. spring 6? applied to the end rather thanthe side of the terminal chamber 1", it being evident that the 'door may be arranged at the side or the end of the chamber, as is preferred, in accordance with the positioning of the same in relation to .the normal location of the clerk and surroundirifiportions of the shelving, counter,

minates adjoining the top of the door 2".

button 70 may be disposed above the meaevr opeg to be engaged by the thumb of the band that opens door 26, thereby facilitating this operation when a vacuum exists within the terminal.

In the use of a terminal of this character the carrier passes upwardly through tube 12, engages deflector plate 14" and is thrown into a substantial horizontal position adjoinin' the door 2 where it readily may be graspe by the clerk when the door is opened, the dispatch tube 15 being disposed nearer the door so that the departing tubes may be more conveniently inserted therein.

Figs. 10, 11 and 12 illustrate a terminal chamber or box of the same general character as shown in Figs. 7, 8 and 9 and with the various portions thereof desi nated by similar reference numerals, but in this embodiment of the invention the delivery and dispatch tubes are shown as projecting into the upper portion of the box. With this arrangement of the delivery tube 12 may terminate just below the box top and the deflector plate 15 may curve downwardly from the same toward the door 2" at the opposite side of the box. The dispatch tube 15 may curve downwardly and have a flared open end adjoining the door.2". Thus, entering carriers passing downwardly from the open end of tube 12' under the influence of the air blast and gravity will engage the curved deflector plate 14 and be swung thereby to a substantially horizontal position adjoining the door 2 where they may be readily grasped by-the hand of the operator, being so positioned, however, that they will not return to the central station through tube 15 until the operator has'again dispatched the same. Obviously the open end25 of tube 15 is so positioned as to permit the convenient dispatching of the carrier to the I central station. In this embodiment of the invention, a stop 65 may prevent the entering carrier from hitting the door.

It is evident from the above description that, in accordance with the present invention, a simple, compact, convenient and attractive pneumatic dispatch terminal may be provided to suit a wide variety of conditions, having its'closure arranged at either the side or the end, depending upon the normal position of the receiving clerk and the surrounding furnishings, and having the dispatch and delivery tubes projecting into either its bottom '01 top wall in accordance with the preferred disposition of the same. It is further evident that such a delivery terminal may be arranged to permit the convenient disposal of the arriving carriers adjoining the door so that they may be readily grasped by the clerk or operator and that the delivery tube may be tioned to permit the convenient dispatch of a carrier to the central ofice, the ends of these tubes, however, being so disposed in accordance withthe present invention that without necessity of moving parts,

valves, flaps, or the like, the return of an unopened carrier to the central office is avoided, although normally a constant circulation of an may pass through the terminal chamber.

In certain installations of a terminal of p the character disclosed herein it may be provided with doors at either side or at "a side or end or any other desired locations smthat access maybe afforded to the carriers from a plurality of positions adjoining the ter-.

position to each other and accessible upon opening the door.

2. A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system having a delivery and a dispatch tube, said terminal comprising a box having a normally closed door, the ends of the delivery and dispatch tubes projecting into the box in such positions in relation to each other that a carrier can not pass directly from one tube to the other.

3. A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system having a delivery and a dispatch tube, said terminal comprising a box havin a normally closed door, the ends of the elivery and dispatch tubes projecting into the box with their open ends spaced at a distance less than the length of a normal carrier.

4. A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system having a delivery and a dispatch tube, said terminal comprising a box having a normally closed door, the ends of the delivery and dispatch tubes projecting into the box in such positions in relation to each other that a carrier can not pass directly from one tube to the other, and a curved deflector adjoining the delivery tube to Y en age the end of a tube leaving the same an to turn it out of alignment with the end of the car rier dispatch tube.

5. A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system having a delivery and a dispatch tube,

said terminal comprising a box having a normally closed door, the ends of the delivery and dispatch tubes projecting into the box with their open ends spaced at a dis- 1 tanee les than the length of a normal carand dispatch to proj in substantially parallel juxtaposition, and

' acurved deflector arranged to turn a carrier v ed to deliver carriers into the chamber, a is- I patch tube communicatingwith the chamgivingaccess'to said chamber,

. accessible upon 0 within the ,cham er fordeflecting arriving carriers laterally away from the dispatch I leaving the delivery tube at an angle out of alignment with the dispatch tube.

7 .A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system having a delivery and a dispatch tube, said terminal comprising a box having a normally closed door, the ends of the delivery and dispatch tubes projecting into the box in substantlally parallel juxtaposition, ,and a curved deflector arranged to turn a angle carrier leaving the delivery tube at an said out of alignment with the dispatch tube,

dispatch tube being located nearer the door than said delivery tube.

8. A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system having a delivery and a dispatch tube,

said terminal comprising a boxhaving a normally closed door, the box having a width of the order of the diameter of a normal carrier, the ends of the delivery and dispatch I tubes projecting into the box in juxtaposition to each other, and substantially in parallelism with each other.

9. tems comprising a box, delivery and dispatch tubes connected to the box, the latter having an opening in one side thereof, a swinging door covering the opening, latch mechanism for the door including a latch element pivoted upon the box, a handle for said latch mechanism, the handle contacting with and pivoting said element and thus acting as a lever to pry the door away from the box wall.

10. A terminal for pneumatic dispatch systems comprising a box, delivery and dispatch tubes connected to the box, the latter aving an opening on one side thereof, a swinging door covering the opening, latch mechanism for thedoor including a latch element yieldably mounted on the box, a

striker fixed to the door engageable therewith, and a handle on the door to disengage the element from the striker and to act as a" lever to pry the door edge away from the box. 11. A terminal for a pneumatic dispatch system comprising a housing providing a Y substantially ception of carriers,

air-tight chamber for the rewhich enters the housing and which is ada' tber, the end ortions of the delivery and dispatch tubes eing' substantially parallel and ening the door, and means tube.

Signed by meat Syracuse, New York, this second day of November, 1928. V

- JAMES T. COWLEY.

A terminal for pneumatic dispatch sysa normally closed door a delivery tube DISCLAIMER 1,769,677 .James T. Cowley, Syracuse, N. Y. DISPATCH-SYSTEM TERMINAL. Patent dated July 1, 1930. Disclaimer filed June 19, 1936, by the assignee, The Lamson Company. Hereby enters this disclaimer to claim 1 of the specification.

[Ofiicial Gazette July 7, 1.936.] 

